The Words I Know
by ThatChick101
Summary: When life gives you football players, you make happiness—against all odds. Even if they always seem to not be in your favor. Modern day AU. OOC, since, y'know, Cato isn't killing it up and stuffs.
1. Chapter 1

Summary: When life gives you football players, you make happiness—against all odds. Even if they always seem to not be in your favor. OOC, since, y'know, Cato isn't killing it up and stuffs.

**_Don't worry if you're confused through this, this chapter is set in the middle of the storyline._**

This is my first fanfic. So PLEASE, lay on the criticism people! I need some feedback. I apologize in advance for the lack of spelling and grammar checks. I don't know how the whole beta thing works, so I don't have one. Bummer, right? Sorry dudes.

Disclaimer: My name isn't Suzanne Collins. Therefore I don't own Peeta Mellark (unfortunately) or the rest of The Hunger Games. Sorry to disappoint.

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**Chapter 1: Katniss' POV**

**Present day:**

"You know, you and Peeta Mellark should go dance together."

"What?"

Of all the random and ridiculous ideas Prim had released from that little blonde head of hers, I was quite sure that this one was the worst. Any implication of physical contact with that boy was far off my radar that night. She smiled at me with some knowing look like she knew something I didn't, and repeated her statement.

"Okay, I think someone has had enough candy for one night." I grabbed her hand, grateful for the excuse to leave this useless costume party Madge and Gale had dragged me to. Speaking of which, I needed to find them so we could head back home.

"No Katniss!" She pulled herself from my grip and folded her arms over, refusing my attempts to go home…again. "I didn't even have a chance to dance with Rory yet! And YOU haven't talked to one guy this entire night. You promised Katniss." I rolled my eyes at her mention of our earlier debate.

"I know what I said, but seriously, look around you. This isn't exactly a nice environment." She scanned the Mellarks' living room then, registering the drunken atmosphere of teenage bunnies, vampires, and witches. I saw her raise her eyebrows and mouth 'come here' towards something behind me, before finally smiling up at me with the same 'secret' expression from before. I was just getting ready to ask her what was wrong when I smelled it. Cookie dough.

"Hey there Prim, enjoying the party?" After I silently cursed my horrid luck, I turned around to dismiss the cookie-dough-smelling quarterback. Instead of the scowl I prepared to fix on my face, I held an expression of shock.

Peeta Mellark was standing half naked in front of me.

From head to toe, he had gold glitter lining his body. His hair was pushed up and back out of his face in a disheveled mess that somehow looked perfect. His crystalline eyes smiled along with the 2 plump lips on his face. Perfection also lined his upper body in a flawless contour of abs and muscle. Light blonde speckles of weaved hair swayed lightly across his chest with the movement of dancing around us. He was wider than I remember him being—in more aspects than one. His white and gold shorts hung low on his body, giving everyone a view to the v shape leading lower and lower into dangerous territory. He was definitely a sight to be seen, even more than usual.

I realized I was ogling him a few seconds too late. He tilted his head and held a small expression of curiosity, which soon turned into triumph. "Hey Katniss, wanna dance?" He finally greeted me, offering his hand. I ignored it and looked down instead, thanking the dim lighting for hiding my steadily increasing blush. Annoyance coursed through me at being caught staring at him, and I hid my features with my hair.

"Actually, we were just leaving. It's late and Prim has homework."

"No I don't." Damn it.

"Well, I do, so goodnight." I heard her whine behind me, clearly not wanting to cooperate with my escape plan. Her footsteps echoed on the hardwood floor as she stomped away to who knows where. I cursed and looked up in time to see him glance at my chest. A flicker of surprise registered there before he met my eyes once again, an apology written out. I guess he noticed my annoyed mood. And my protruding chest, no thanks to the glittery black corset. I knew I shouldn't have agreed to wear this slutty outfit.

"Leaving? I was hoping we could talk for a minute. Nice costume by the way." I narrowed my eyes at his indication of my corset, mask, tights, crown, and tutu ensemble meant to resemble a 'mysterious princess,' as Madge had put it.

"Gale's idea. I could say the same to you," I snapped back. He only laughed, causing his hair to shake and a piece to fall out of place. I got the strange urge to move it into place again, but remained in my stand-off position near the Halloween candy bowls.

"Thanks, Finnick's idea. I was going for a Greek God." At the mention of his wild swim star friend, he screamed his arrival, wearing Annie on his arm and not much else. He and Peeta had matching costumes, it seemed.

"Peet, I thaw you twooo were gonna DANCEEE with us? Whaz the hol' up?" His stumbling words tumbled with the rhythm of his drunk body, moving an amused Annie along with it. I scrunched my nose up at the smell of alcohol. I thought he was done drinking. Peeta apparently had the same thought process.

"Finn, dude, didn't you say you were done drinking? It hasn't even been 2 full days man." As he spoke, Finnick stumbled toward the ground but Annie held him upright, all traces of amusement gone.

"What is he talking about? What happened?" She questioned, concern now lining her face. Finnick looked guilty at being caught before he guarded his features.

"Maybeee we can dance later. I gotta tell Annie." He tried to stand up straight and pull Annie in the opposite direction of the 50 some dancing kids out in the lit up backyard, but tripped on his own feet. Annie and Peeta both launched toward him with wide arms, struggling to pull him upright. I used the distraction to get about 3 feet away before a familiar arm locked around my waist. His breath tickled the hairs on the back of my neck as he held me in front of him, hands located on my waist.

"Ohhhhh no you don't. You and I need to talk Katniss." He started walking me in the direction of the stairwell as I began to protest. They were useless attempts, I knew that. Peeta's strength was no secret to me, yet I tried anyway to push his hands off of my body. His arms basically laughed in reply, meeting my attempts with a tighter grip every time. Since I was in no position to willingly walk upstairs with him, he lifted me from the ground and threw me across his shoulder. "I'm sorry Kat, but I REALLY have to talk to you," he apologized to my butt. I tried swinging my legs toward his face to get a good hit on him, but again it was useless.

We reached his bedroom in no time, and he put me down before returning his hands to their earlier tight-gripped position. I wiggled the knob and moved to stand in the middle of his room once it opened. My arms automatically crossed themselves over my chest, although they should have shot to my face. I was embarrassed about having to be carried up the stairs as several of our classmates paused to observe us. There was no way in HELL that I was going to talk to him now.

He sighed at my childish behavior before closing and locking the door. The silence would have been deafening after that if "Can't Stop Me" by Afrojack hadn't been pounding through the floor from downstairs. He walked over to his bed in a nonchalant way, as if everything was perfect and nothing was wrong. The calm demeanor vanished when his hands wound themselves into his hair and pulled harshly. He looked so distraught that I almost wanted to ditch the stubborn act and go over to him.

Almost.

He strode over to me instead, determination flooding his face. It faltered as he neared me, and then his feet led him walking away from me. He began pacing the room, continuously fidgeting and changing angry expressions. He finally won the argument with his feet and trudged in my direction. We still had about 8 feet between us when he started talking from behind his hands that were rubbing at his face.

"Ou a ways wook ready wetty," he mumbled slowly.

"What?" I questioned, not understanding what he was saying. His hands dropped, revealing his face. For the first time that night, I noticed the dark spots below his eyes and the sharp veins. He looked like he hadn't slept in days.

"I said…I said you always look really pretty." I stiffened at the compliment, instantly longing for that jacket I contemplated sneaking in Gale's truck before we left. Of course Peeta would like the excessive cleavage and the tiny skirt.

"And I know you hate compliments, especially from me, but I felt the need to say it." I looked down, preparing to tune out his entire apology, if that was what this was. Until he spoke his next words. "But not tonight." I took a chance and lifted my head up to watch his expressions play out. Anger. Guilt. More anger. Then sadness. "Tonight you look like Glimmer and Clove." Infuriation took over my body and I glared at him for the comparison between the three of us. "Not like that, Kat. Not like that. It's just…" I loosened a little as I watched my ex-whatever struggle for words. It wasn't like him at all. But I guess we had both been pretty different people the last week and a half.

"You're perfect. And don't stiffen up, I'm not saying that as a compliment. It's just a fact. You always have been. Yet here you are, dressed up like one of those phony cheerleaders because of some stupid comment I made." Anger returned to his face at the memory of the event both of us were playing through our heads.

"I was just trying to get Rye off my case. He can be an ass, you and I both know that, and he was being even more dumb than usual that night. So was I. I just wanted him to shut up about the two of us being together." I erased all emotion in my face as the hurt came back full force from his words that night.

"I said some stupid things, I know. Some REALLY stupid things, that had no grain of truth to them whatsoever. And I don't blame you for hating me. I hate myself even more. Any man who ever treats you less than what you deserve should face the consequences." I took one step toward him. 7 feet apart.

"You've been through hell and back the last month with everything going on, and you didn't need my immature comments to make you feel insecure about who you are." 6 feet apart. "You don't need anyone. You're so stubbornly independent. And smart. And beautiful—without the makeup and cleavage. And unknowingly gentle, no matter how strong you try to come off." 5 feet. "And funny, in your own way. And-shit-sexy as HELL Katniss. An—did I say beautiful? Because, holy, you're…just…beautiful." 4 feet.

"I screwed up. Big time. I'm so sorry. Damn it I wish that didn't sound so cliché but I—fuck, I'm sorry. I didn't mean any word of it. I love you. I love you so damn much, and I know you hate to hear about it all the time and you might not believe me right now, but I do. More than…" 3 feet. "…more than…more than Gale likes to sneak a peek under Madge's dresses. Or Finnick likes to get himself into stupid situations. Or we like to pretend like we aren't crazy about each other." 2 feet.

"I just need you to know that I would never intentionally try to hurt you. I want to be the one person in your life who you can trust with everything and depend on. And I know you don't need to be taken care of, but I want to do things for you that I have never done before. I want you to experience love, real love, not what your mom lies to you about." 1 foot. "A love that makes you want to scream and cry and laugh…" he finally realized our close proximity, and started backing up towards his bed in the center of the room. I internally smiled and decided I might as well follow him.

"No Kat, you need to listen to this!" He reached his bed and used his hands to steady himself.

"I think I've heard enough for now." I was at his lap now, and began to crawl towards him while he escaped backwards to the other side.

"No, you don't understand. I'm sorry about—"

"I know."

"But I just need to explain to you how much I lo—"

"Mhmm." I was sitting up on the edge of the bed at that point, my hands rested on his shoulders as he stood up in front of me. He kept up his attempts at apologies, but I interrupted him with a quick comment every time. We gazed at each other for a good 70 seconds before his confusion slowly faded into a bright smile. I gave him a small smile of my own, content with his decision to stop talking.

"So does this mean you forgive me?" I leaned in and brought his lips to mine with a tug at his silky blonde locks.

"Maybe," I answered in between kisses, teasing him with my lips.

"You shouldn't." I kissed his forehead this time, something he did to me a lot.

"I know."

"I really am—"

"Peeta."

"Ok." The conversation ended with him forcing my body onto the cloud-like mattress and claiming me as his with small nips at my neck.

* * *

"I'll see you tomorrow," he whispered against my lips, only causing my chills from the brisk October night to intensify. He held me against his strong body for a few more moments before Gale had to pry his hands away so we could finally get my sister home into bed. Madge, Gale, and I bid Peeta one last goodbye before filing into Gale's truck where Prim was leaning on the headrest sleeping. He cast a heartfelt expression at me before he stepped back into his parents' house.

On the ride back home, I felt peaceful for once in a long time. Things seemed to be going well. Almost too well. It was an odd feeling to be elated, but I couldn't describe my emotions as anything but that. My instincts told me not to trust my happiness, but I ignored them and focused on the passing trees outside the front seat window. In my head, I replayed the progress Peeta and I made after his way-too-lengthy apology speech.

_I moved out from under him when his kisses seemed to trail lower than my chest. I still wasn't ready. He sat up with a sparkling smile that reached further than his eyes. _

"_Sorry. I forgot how innocent you are."_

"_You don't look very sorry. Your smile is the size of Texas." He laughed at that as if it was the funniest joke in the world._

"_Okay, you caught me, I'm not all that sorry. You just make me feel so…" His eyes led a blazing trail of lust starting from my head, crossing down to my chest and lingering there, continuing lower, and passing by my lap to my feet, where he placed a soft kiss. "happy."_

_I brushed my fingertips along his face before they decided that it wasn't enough and rested themselves on his bare chest. I forced them to stop there, no wanting to give him the wrong idea about what I wanted, though I wasn't even sure what that was. _

"_I love you Katniss." I closed my eyes, wondering how just 4 words could send my heart racing._

"_I know."_

A soft hand pulled my from the sleep I hadn't known I fell into. Gale was there with Prim in his arms, Madge nowhere to be seen. He must have already taken her home.

"C'mon Catnip." I followed his tall figure into the house, offering to take her upstairs before the house phone rang. Curious, I went to pick it up while Gale brought Prim upstairs.

"Hello?" I murmured, sleep still evident in my voice.

"Katniss?" A broken voice answered, sounding rough and unsure. Still, I recognized it as Rye. I laughed at his impeccable acting skills.

"Oh hey Rye. Did Peeta tell you to apologize to me? It's okay, you don't have to, all is forgiven. You can cut the 'heartbroken voice' crap. He did, however, try to corrupt me. I swear, that boy is going to be the death—" His sob broke me from my bubbly rambling.

Immediately I was brought back into the past. The day that my father died, Prim had made a similar sound after mom broke the news to us. I knew that sound anywhere. It was pure and utter sorrow.

The speed at which my emotions changed and had me staggering towards the ground was unimaginable. Thankfully, my primal instincts were quicker than my brain, and they caught the edge of the desk I standing at before I hit the ground head on.

I knew it was too good to be true. Happiness only came in spouts, and if you had too much of it, it would be taken away from you.

"I'm so sorry," he cried from the other end of the phone. My heart stopped. This wasn't happening. No.

"He was shot Katniss."

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Okay! I would have made this longer, but I have a very specific way that I want this storyline to go, and this chapter needed to stop here. Next chapter will be set prior to this one, and will be longer. Please leave me some feedback, I would greatly appreciate it (that is, if anyone even reads this). Thanks for reading, and I'll see you in the next chapter!


	2. Chapter 2

Summary: When life gives you football players, you make happiness—against all odds. Even if they always seem to not be in your favor. Modern Day AU. OOC, since, y'know, Cato isn't killing it up and stuffs.

AH! My first chapter received 5 great reviews within a two day radius! That's more than I was expecting on my first chapter, and quite quickly too! So a big, BIG thank you to **lknights91, Thynerdgurl, Bellanator116, Kayla,** and **Swishy Willow Wand**! Please know that I greatly appreciate it, and any feedback at all was a fantastic surprise. Also, thank you to those who favorited and followed! Moving forward, hope you like this. Leggo.

Disclaimer: I like to steal kisses, not books. Credit to Suzanne Collins for the chracters.

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**Chapter 2: Katniss' POV**

**5 months earlier:**

A trillion thoughts passed through my head as I walked to the local gym in the city. School had ended just 2 days before, and I was worried that by applying for a job I wouldn't have a chance to relax and enjoy the summer with Prim. A million scenarios of possible picnics, hikes, and hide and seek games flashed through my mind as I approached the door to my new cleaning job. I could only hope for the best as I stepped through the main hallway into the weight room.

44 eyes stared back at me, wonder evident in their faces.

My face heated up at being stared at, and I pretended to be very interested in my shoes. The coach who hired me emerged then, a basket full of footballs trailing behind him. He grunted at me, and I awkwardly fiddled with the hem of my dirty white t-shirt.

"Um...today I start—"

"The job. Yeah. Name's Haymitch, lets skip the introduction spiel sweetheart. Peeta show 'er where the rags and weights are. In fact, give 'er a tour while I discuss what the rules are. I'm assuming you already know them, superstar."

Every word after 'Peeta' sounded muffled in my ears. I slowly brought my eyes to the back of the room where Peeta stood up from the bench of stocky football players. Blue eyes met grey, and everything became 100 times worse as reality struck me. Hard.

"Actually, I already know my way around." It wasn't a complete lie; I had met up with Gale plenty of times after his baseball practices before he quit. I just never went inside. I glanced at Peeta, who was looking confused and mouthed something to me. I didn't catch it because my head was already back down.

"Good. Go ahead and take a seat over there and I'll get you started after I take care of my boys." I followed his finger to a seat that was directly to the left of where Peeta was sitting on the end of the bench. I wasn't sure if this Haymitch was consciously trying to ruin my life, but he was doing a damn good job for an amateur.

I did the walk of shame to the chair, and slowly sat down. The whole way down I felt Peeta's eyes on my figure, probably weighing how much of a freak I was and if he wanted to escape now or later. He leaned over and whispered something to a pretty boy sitting on his right, who then made a big show of leaning towards me and checking my body out. He whistled low and his whole team laughed.

"Finnick, calm your ass. Peeta's redder than a tomato." I noticed then that he was, indeed, fairly red. But I figured that he couldn't possibly be as embarrassed as I was.

Peeta and I went way back. 7th grade, we had to do an English project together on romance. He insisted on doing Romeo and Juliet, so I blindly agreed. When it came time for us to film a scene, he gave me a script he pulled from online. When I skimmed it over, I saw a particular scene.

"It says here we're supposed to kiss," I exclaimed, wondering how he had missed that tidbit of information.

"Ok!" He answered excitedly, and he leaned over and planted his lips right onto mine. I shoved him away and ran home crying. We failed the project, and I had never trusted him since.

We never talked after that, and I had never made any plans to change that status. But, considering he was sitting right next to me whispering things to his friends about me, I got a hunch that he had other plans to destroy my life.

This was going to be a longgg summer.

By the end of the day, I was extremely tired. Apparently, 'cleaning' had been a broad term that Haymitch only used to reel people into the job. The only cleaning I did was of the floor after some kid named Cato from my grade had dropped a 100lb weight on the water bucket to get me to bend over. I wasn't even aware that was his intention until he smacked me on my ass and the whole team had to pull me back after I scratched his face. Although, it seemed like Peeta was trying to do more damage than good to Cato, but I may have been imagining that.

The water incident wasn't the only trouble I faced throughout the day. Whatever bad comment that Peeta had mentioned to that one guy had gotten around to all twenty-two of them. They kept staring at me, snickering and making stupid gestures. And each time, Peeta would glance at me with apologetic eyes. If I had thought I didn't like Peeta before, I loathed him now. He was at the top of my hate list, and I didn't trust him at all.

I got home just in time for dinner. A waft of salty spices enticed my nose as I set down my water bottle and entered the kitchen. Prim was setting the table, and mother was transferring her classic beef stew into two wood bowls. I paused in my tracks and asked myself why the nice bowls were out. Before my father had died, he had taught my mother how to make sculptures. She made wood bowls for everyone; he died from the firehouse fire the following week. Needless to say, that ended all her sculpting.

The last time she brought out the bowls was to tell Prim and I we had to move out of our house in the city to the house near the woods. The time before that, she told us about our fathers' fate. I was alert and mentally prepared myself for whatever news she had to deliver.

"Katniss!" Prim exclaimed once she noticed my stiff figure in the doorframe. I loosened up and went to help her set the table.

"Hey there. How was your day?" She took my greeting as an invitation to explain her adventurous day spying on Rory, and didn't stop until all three of us sat down. We ate slowly, tension thicker than a tree trunk in the air. I decided to break it.

"What's happening this time?" My words stopped Prim and Mother in their tracks, and they both stopped eating. Mother looked at me from across the table, then to Prim on her right. Me, Prim. Me. Prim. Me again.

"We were robbed. The savings we set up for Prim's college are gone, along with any other money we had in savings."

At first I didn't think I heard her right, and then Prim's cries broke through to me. I scooted over to her and positioned us both so that she could rest her head on my shoulder, and I could rub her back. While Prim grieved about her lost chance at becoming a neurologist, I asked mother questions and tried not to let my fury show.

"Where were the savings?"

"In the back storage room in a small metal bin."

"You didn't think to move them somewhere hidden?" Her blank stare faltered for 2 seconds before she recovered herself.

"I did, but I never had the time. I'm so sorry Prim." She began rubbing Prim's arms as her sobs reduced to sniffling, and I tried to ignore how her apology to me was forgotten. All that hard work I had done over the years, all down the drain. Not that she cared.

"Did you call the police?" She nodded.

"They suspect that the robbers were a gang known as 'The Mutts.' They're 5 men who have been causing trouble around the city for the past 3 weeks. They've robbed a few homes, attempted to rob a bank, and attacked an old man outside a grocery store. The leader's name is Snow, he used to be in the military. He stole weapons from them to use for his gang." I took in everything my mother described to me about this gang quickly.

I wouldn't let them get away with this.

I offered to take Prim and her best friend Rue to the park after work the next day to calm her down. That seemed to satisfy her enough to get her into bed.

"That reminds me," she started once the covers were over both of our bodies. I shifted so I could get a good look at her face. "How was your first day at work?" For some reason she smiled, and I looked at her suspiciously. Somehow I got the feeling she already had an idea of how my day went. I chose not to answer her immediately and instead focused on our dull white wallpaper. My eyes traveled over to the wooden chair my father made us as kids, and I suddenly missed him.

"It was fine." Her smile turned into a smirk, and she snorted.

"Ok Katniss." She turned towards the wall, which left me more confused than before.

"What?" I asked, wondering why she was being so cryptic.

"Rue told me some things. That's all. Night Kat." With that she told me to close the windows, which I complied to. I was still rendered speechless when I got back in bed. Rue? What did Rue know about how my day went? My exhaustion told my mind to shut up and stop asking questions I didn't know the answer to. That night I dreamed about Peeta Mellark naked in my bed.

* * *

The next morning, I groggily got out of bed and readied myself for another torturous day at the weight room. I tried to convince myself that 5 hours wasn't such a bad thing as I put my old tennis shoes on, but I couldn't come up with any positives out of the situation other than the money. I swallowed my negativity and set out the door to day two of work. My feet carried me towards the gym in peace for about 10 minutes before trouble arrived.

I was walking along the side of the road when a green Jeep pulled up next to me, matching my pace. I panicked and considered running to the police station before the front window let down and I saw the passenger and driver. I groaned and picked up my speed.

"In a hurry, beautiful?" I scowled at Finnick and hoped that he would crash into a tree or something.

"C'mon man, leave her alone. Peeta would kill us if he knew we were screwing around with her." Finnick's passenger and his words piqued my interest. Was Peeta banning all communication with me?

"Calm your tits Thresh, I just want to talk to her." Even though he was talking to his friend, I could hear his words clearly enough to understand what they were talking about. And to pick up my speed a bit more.

"So sweet cheeks, you single? Because I know a guy who could definitely change that." I almost laughed at how pathetic he sounded. I probably would have, if I were in a better mood. But I was feeling angry at being robbed and annoyed at being bothered, so instead of ignoring them, I decided to give them a piece of my mind.

"As a matter of fact, yes, I am single, but I would never in a million years want to escort you or any guy on your team, because quite frankly you're all annoying as hell. So just leave me ALONE!" I had stopped walking to tell them this at a stop sign, and they both just stared at me in response. I thought I had gotten my point across until Finnick started laughing.

"Escort? What are we, in the 9th century? What does that even mean?" He continued to laugh as I took a detour around a few buildings in order to avoid them.

When I finally reached the entrance to the gym, I took slow deliberate breaths to calm my breathing. If I was going to get through the day, I would need to be strong and have patience. One of those qualities wasn't exactly my expertise. With a sigh, I pulled open the door and walked to the weight room where 22 local football players would be waiting.

When I stepped in, only 4 eyes watched me this time. I took a seat in the chair from yesterday and waited for the other team members plus Haymitch to arrive. People gradually filed in through the door, scattering across the room to the benches and other chairs. Peeta walked in 3 minutes later, his jersey on for the first time since practices began. Everyone else had on the uniform as well, but no one wore it like Peeta. I hated to admit to myself that he looked amazing. His hair was sticking in every which way, making him seem wilder. His broad shoulders seemed bigger under the huge shoulder pads, and his chest looked buffer. He also seemed to walk more confidently, probably from the added weight of the jersey.

I pushed away my teenage girl hormones as he sat next to me, shaking his golden hair out and holding his helmet.

"Hi Katniss." 'Why is he talking to me?' I looked over at him and was going to reply, but somehow my answer got stuck in my throat when I caught sight of his intense blue orbs. I nodded fast like an idiot, and turned to the front of the room as Haymitch cleared his throat.

"Alright boys. Today we start on some real training. Half of you will stay in here and lift some weights, get in all your exercise, blah blah blah. As for the rest of you, I'll take you out back to the field and we can get some games rolling. Later on we'll switch unless you prove to me you don't need the training." The guys hollered and whooped at the mention of being out on the field playing.

"Let's head out. Everyone in here, stay away from anything over 120lbs for now. I don't need any dead bodies to clean up." I mentally noted that I would actually be the one cleaning them up, but whatever. "The rest of you, grab your helmets and balls and let's move." Everyone laughed at his that's-what-she-said moment while I wandered around lost. "Katniss, you're coming with me to help keep score." I nodded my assent and followed him and twelve other boys (including Peeta, Finnick, and Cato. Joy.) out to the field.

I never knew I could get so sexually frustrated from watching a game of football.

The moment we started, I could tell that Peeta owned the field. Even from my place next to Haymitch on the bleachers, you could tell that he was passionate about this. All twelve of them started out on the blocking sleds*, moving them from one side to the other 5 times. After that they ran, stretched, did push-ups, and finally divided themselves into two teams and started playing.

I couldn't keep my eyes off Peeta the entire time.

He excelled at everything he did, even just walking. His body moved swiftly, never at a wrong angle. He danced on the field, running, passing, and of course, getting touchdowns. 2 girls down the street started calling him blonde-football-man and cheered for him every time he would lead his team to another point. Or 3 points. Or 7. He was relentless, and he had to take a break to get some water from the Gatorade dispenser near Haymitch and I. He jogged over and took off his helmet, hair dripping wet from sweat.

"Keep it up Mellark, we can work on that scholarship." He smiled in his cup and trained his eyes on me. I looked away quickly, but he touched my arm to get my attention.

When I finally looked at him, he asked, "could you throw this away for me?" His hand extended out with the now empty plastic cup around his fingers. I narrowed my eyes and huffed but he laughed before he threw it out in the trash can himself. "Kidding, Katniss."

Like the stubborn child that I was, I turned my head away and watched Cato and Finnick tackle each other to the ground. Through my peripheral vision I saw him shrug before he returned to his territory.

I sighed. Dammit he was so hot and talented and I just really wanted to talk to him and clear some of these dirty thoughts running around. But that was much easier said than done.

After 2 and a half hours of intense, non-stop playing, everything reeked of sweat. We had all returned to the weight room, where guys started taking off their shirts and jerseys. That was right around the time my face heated up and I busied myself with organizing the boys' shoes that were already lined neatly on a table. "Yo coach, we're gonna hit the showers across the hall!" Cato called, several guys following him out the door.

It hadn't registered in my mind that they were going to shower naked until Haymitch sent me in there with a stack of dry towels. He told me to just leave them somewhere, but I waltzed straight into the shower room, fog floating in the air. When my eyes finally adjusted, I realized that every guy surrounding me was either naked or getting ready to be. My body shut down at the sight of so much skin exposure. I had never seen any guy nude before, so it was a big transformation to being in the midst of dozens of them.

No one had noticed me yet. Or, if they had, they didn't acknowledge my presence. Which was funny, because I wanted to be anything but invisible. I wanted them all to cover their...um, you know what, and feel as uncomfortable as I was. I was stuck. I needed to deliver the towels, but I didn't want Cato or Finnick to catch me here and tease me about it forever. So, I did the only plausible thing I could think of in that kind of situation. I threw myself inside one of the shower stations and pulled the curtain shut.

"Woahhhhhh!" My mind hadn't caught up with my body quite yet, so instead of running out when I heard Peeta's surprised greeting, I turned around. My mind was cloudy, but my eyes communicated with my mouth and I squeaked as I shoved the towels into his thingy. My mind finally caught up with me and I screamed while trying to run backwards. My foot slipped on the water steadily flowing from the showerhead, and he grabbed my arm to catch me. That would have worked out fine if I hadn't shoved him in my panic and sent us both toppling to the ground. To top off the fantastic situation, everyone heard me scream and came running to Peeta's shower station, where he was conveniently placed on top of me, soaking wet, naked, arms on both sides of my head to break his fall.

No one moved or said a word for several seconds, until they all—minus Peeta and I—started laughing and he scrambled to get off me on the slippery tile flooring. I screamed again, and ran into the bathroom to lock myself in a stall until I died. I stayed there, staring blankly at the scribbles on the maroon stall for 3 minute,s simply trying to calm my breathing. Once that task was accomplished I couldn't get the racing thoughts out of my head.

'What the hell just happened? Did I just sexually harass Peeta Mellark? Was he actually naked? Did everyone really just catch us in that position? What are they thinking? What is he thinking? Should I apologize?' I heard loud yelling and insane laughs in the hallway. 'Probably not.'

So many emotions were running through my veins. First, embarrassment, because I was just caught in the most awkward situation ever with the boy I was just having dirty thoughts about. Second, humiliation at not realizing that there was someone in there naked, because hello Katniss, it is a shower room. Third, stupidity at not just leaving the towels on the ground; and at pushing Peeta when he was just trying to stop my idiot self from falling.

I stared at the stall for a few more minutes before my mind conjured up the thought, "his chest is packed." Then I slammed my head against the wall because those weren't exactly thoughts a virgin should be having after her first naked boy encounter. Especially not me. I wasn't interested in guys—they were hard work and wasted energy. So why was I replaying the image of his naked form before I shoved those towels at him? I pondered the answer to that when I heard commotion outside the bathroom door.

"...just molested her, so yeah, you should get your ass in there and apologize," someone exclaimed loudly. Several voices shushed him, and I heard Peeta plead, "Please just give her some time and space. If she wanted to talk she wouldn't have locked herself in the bathroom." Smart kid. "Give her a minute."

"Oh, you gave her MORE than just a minute," Finnick joined in, laughing hysterically.

"Shut up Finnick," two deep voices synchronized.

"Look Haymitch is going to make us do 500 push-ups if someone doesn't go in there and say sorry." Someone groaned, and I heard Finnick laugh again.

"Don't worry dude, I'll go in with you. I guess I could apologize for making her mad this morning." With that, I heard the door hinges creak before soft footsteps padded in.

"Katniss?" Peeta's soft voice broke the silence, and I swallowed all traces of embarrassment left. This was a stupid mistake, and I was acting like some dumb bimbo. I needed to grow the hell up.

With one last deep breath, I undid the lock and poked my head out. Peeta and Finnick were standing at the entrance, but Finnick remained silent.

"Uh...hey."

Pause.

"How's it going?"

Silence.

"It's going," I manage, my voice 5 octaves higher than usual in the after-shock of the situation. He nodded in reply and stared down at his shoes. His hands moved to stick inside his pockets, and a few more awkward silences passed before Finnick took matters into his own hands with a roll of his eyes.

"Peeta and I are here to say sorry. Me for bothering you this morning, him for getting horny while laying naked on top of you. Ice cream anyone?" He rubbed his hands together as if ice cream solves everything. For the moment, it did.

"Finnick, you were supposed to apologize, not—"

"Ice cream sounds nice." They both stared at me, bewildered at my acceptance of their apologies. Finnick smirked at Peeta, but he didn't notice. He was too busy smiling at me.

All three of us walked back to the weight room through the empty halls, apart from a few stragglers. Finnick chattered happily the whole 14 feet there about nothing. Peeta and I pretended we weren't stealing glances at each other. We found the room empty apart from Haymitch upon our arrival.

"I sent the boys home after your whole rape incident," he answered to our confused looks.

"I didn't—" Peeta started, but Haymitch dismissed him with a wave of his hand.

"Sure you didn't. Now get out of my face." He grunted, and Finnick started to gather he and Peeta's things.

"Come on," he led us out of the gym to his jeep. He hopped in the driver's seat with Peeta next to him, while I moved a few CD's out of the way in the backseat. Finnick drove around the city for just a couple of minutes before we arrived at a place called Coldstone. A bell rang as we stepped in and I followed them to a booth near the back.

It was a fairly small café, only about 20 booths and 5 tables, plus a bar near the front. But it smelled like chocolate and had tons of windows, and it felt very homey. I got comfortable on the seat while Peeta and Finnick were on the other side were discussing what to get.

"Katniss, what would you like?" Peeta asked, and I grabbed one of the small foldable menus to look over the choices. On the inside I saw a cheesecake slice with vanilla ice cream and showed Peeta. He nodded and told Finnick, who went up to place our orders. Peeta and I were alone.

He cleared his throat and I brought my attention to him. "Listen, I really am sorry about that whole thing earlier. I shouldn't have grabbed you and I should have turned around. I wasn't even thinking. I hope you don't hate me." I watched him curiously. He seemed so genuine about the apology, unlike Finnick. Who, at the moment, was slipping the hostess a piece of paper and smiling coyly. I went back to surveying Peeta, who held a strangely hopeful expression.

"I don't hate you," I eventually murmured. His lips lifted up, and I fiddled with my fingernails while I waited for Finnick to return with our orders. When he sat back down on Peeta's left, he was smiling widely.

"What's got you in such a good mood?" Peeta mirrored my thoughts, and he simply brought his hands behind his head in a cocky manner.

"I left Annie over there a special note for when she delivers our treats. Here she comes now." The hostess was walking our way with a tray of desserts, but her expression didn't look all that sweet. She slammed it down in the middle of the table, and picked up Finnick's chocolate milkshake. Instead of handing it to him, she poured it slowly over his head.

"Feel free to fuck off, you jerk," She growled, and escaped back to her stand behind the counter.

Shock left all three of us speechless before I couldn't hold it in any longer, and jumped into a fit of laughter. They soon joined in, and after we gained our composure, Finnick turned to Peeta.

"I told you so," Finnick bragged, licking chocolate from the side of his face. Peeta laughed again in response and nodded, smiling.

"Told him what? You would have your drink served on your head?" I wondered, a smile plastered on my face. He shook his head.

"I told him I could make you laugh."

* * *

There you have it folks, chapter 2. Thank you so much for reading, and I hope you liked it. I thought it was all quite hysterical. Please leave me some feedback!

*Blocking sheds are those things football players run into and push around.


	3. Chapter 3

_Summary: When life gives you football players, you make happiness—against all odds. Even if they always seem to not be in your favor. Modern day AU. OOC, since, y'know, Cato isn't killing it up and stuffs._

_Please keep in mind that this is an AU story while reading._

_Disclaimer: I don't own The Hunger Games._

* * *

**Chapter 3: Katniss' POV**

After the milkshake stunt, I loosened up a bit towards Peeta and Finnick. I was surprised to find out that they actually weren't that bad. Other than Finnick's constant teasing, he was easy to get along with. He may have come off as anything but serious, but I was a people watcher. I could tell that he was guarding his real personality with a layer of jokes. He would say something stupid, Peeta would reprimand him for it, and I would admire their bromance. Even though they weren't actually brothers, they reminded me of Prim and myself. They seemed to really care about each other, regardless of their playful bickering.

It made me wonder what Peeta Mellark was like underneath. Not his clothes, I had pretty much seen all there was to see there. But the person he was when he was all alone. Besides that stolen kiss, he hadn't given me a reason to not trust him. Still, I decided I would be careful around him.  
Since I felt bad about misjudging their characters, I agreed to another after-practice café date. They were thrilled, and said that next time Finnick would plan a whole romantic apology to Annie. On our way to drop me off home in Finnicks' truck, they brainstormed some ideas to get her attention.

"Maybe I could offer to buy her lunch," Finnick suggested. Peeta shook his head, his face serious.

"No, she might have the urge to dump that on you too," he explained. Finnick took his hands off the steering wheel to punch him in the arm. It was all out of fun though. His smile shone almost as bright as the beaming afternoon sun.

"How about you push her into a pile of snow in the woods?" I piped in from the backseat. "That's how me and Gale met. Turn right up here." Peeta turned around to look at me.

"How long ago was this?" His voice sounded off, like he was trying to hold his breath and talk underwater.

"Um..." I tried to remember how old I was when Gale and I had that random encounter while hiking in the woods near his house. We had run into each other by accident, though I wasn't sure why he pushed me. He made up for it by offering to teach me how to climb a tree, and we had been friends ever since.

"I think I was about 7," I offered quietly to Peeta's icy eyes. My previous skepticism about him returned at once as I waited for him to say something. He stared back at me for several seconds, sizing me up about something. It made me feel uncomfortable, and vulnerable. Like he knew all my secrets and was judging me on them. After a few more moments, the unfriendly scrutiny left his eyes, replaced with his usual warm demeanor.

"Huh," he muttered after a while, his body already back to its previous position. The car was silent after that as Finnick drove down the last few roads to my house. I mumbled a distracted thanks to him when he pulled up in front of it and got out the car. I dragged my legs up the steps to my front door and took my house key out of my pocket, still wondering about Peeta's strange behavior. The front door was halfway open when I heard my name being called. My body automatically responded to Peeta's voice, twisting around in his direction.

"Yeah?" I called back to the truck. He leaned slightly out of the car, his arm hanging out the window.

"What's your favorite color?" His face was wiped of all emotion—he looked completely serious. Taken back by his out of the blue question, my brain struggled to form an answer.

"Green," I finally managed. I watched as he nodded once and waved, Finnick's car retreating to the streets again. Once the Jeep was no longer in my view, I bit my lip and made a pact to myself to find out what was up with Peeta Mellark.

* * *

High pitched giggling greeted me when I pushed open the front door. "Prim, Rue, ready for the park?" My voice carried up the stairs to them, and I heard the sound of footsteps running down the stairs not long afterwards. Prim was sporting a simple pink tank top and jean shorts, while Rue wore a gray tank top and jean skirt. Usually we would all be hanging out in our sweats, but it was too hot outside for that during the summer.

"Ready," they said at the same time, and we headed out the door to begin our walk there.

"You do know we're only going to the park to gossip, right Katniss? We aren't babies anymore, the only thing to do there for teenagers is hang at that big tree area thing and talk about all the new carvings in it." I sighed at Prim's statement, not wanting to admit how right she was. Next school year they would both be in high school for the first time, and they were more prepared for it than I was. It was hard to look at Prim as anything but a child. She was my kid sister who I had taken care of for the duration of most of my life. I wasn't ready to let go of her pigtail wearing image just yet.

My thoughts carried me a few more steps before I finally answered her question.

"I know you aren't a kid anymore Prim, but I'm always going to see you that way." My voice was softer than usual; I saved my more sensitive tones of voices for my sister. It probably had something to do with how much I spoiled her. She sighed, and in that moment she resembled me so much it was scary. Which didn't happen often, considering her blonde hair and blue eyes kind of out ruled every other resemblance we had to each other.

"Oh Katniss, you're so sensitive," she mocked me. I smirked and decided to play along.

"You know me. Same goes to you Rue!" I pointed at her, giving her a joking glare. Her giggle indicated how well my acting skills were.

"Yeah, yeah," she dismissed with a wave of her hand. "My big brother says the same thing allll the time." I pinched my eyebrows together.

"You have a brother?" I asked, wondering why I had never known that. She glanced at me as we stepped through the gate to the park.

"Yeah, I thought you knew him." I scoffed at her.

"The only guy I really talk to is Gale," I explained to her, leaving out the part about the whole Peeta and Finnick thing. I wasn't planning on telling anyone about that. From the corner of my eye, I saw Prim whisper something to Rue. Her smile didn't show her teeth, which meant she was hiding something. I pretended not to notice. As we continued on to the huge maple tree with carvings of hearts and names, Prim and Rue persisted in stealing fleeting glances at me. When we finally reached the tree and they sat down at a nearby picnic table, my patience snapped.

"Ok, what's with the first grade blabbering? What are you whispering about?" I questioned while we adjusted at the big tree on the smooth dirt ground. They exchanged yet another strange look and did one of their girly giggle things. Both shook their heads and I decided to just let it go. Girls would be girls, I guessed. Damn teenagers.

* * *

"Truth," I laughed already expecting their eye rolls.

"You always pick truth Katniss. Be adventurous," Prim whined, apparently not happy with my life choices.

"What, hunting isn't adventurous enough for you?" We had been playing truth or dare for 2 hours, and Prim still got mad every time it was my turn to pick.

"Yes, but you barely do that anymore." I thought about the last few months and realized she was right. I had done very minimal tree-climbing explorations or hunts with Gale. It was hard to fit that in-between being robbed and naked with strangers.

"I guess you're right." Her smile returned at my admission. "But I still pick truth." The smile on her face vanished, and for a split second she got a look of triumph. Rue sat there silently, intrigued by our little game.

"Fine Katniss. Is it true that you were naked with Peeta Mellark today at work?"

My mouth shot open, mind growing blank. After the initial shock of her question wore off, my mind conjured up a billion questions. The most obvious question was, of course, how the hell she knew that. Before I could try to stumble through a lie, I heard angry shouting. All three of us looked towards the entrance to the park, and I recognized our mother's work clothes instantly. My confused expression matched theirs, and we all cautiously approached my screeching mother.

"—from work to find an empty house, after we had just been robbed! You didn't even leave a note! I had to call around all our neighbors and my friends until finally Rue's dad told me you were at the park. I was _this _close to calling the county sheriff. I thought Prim was gone! What the hell were you thinking Katniss?"

We had reached her by then, and she paused in her anger to snatch Prim's arm in her own. She began dragging her back towards the entrance, Prim's obedience making the effort slightly easier. "Take Rue home, if you can handle that much."

My eyes wandered over the park, looking at all the surprised bystanders. They landed on one of the picnic tables further away from the tree. His blue eyes were clouded with some weird emotion I couldn't tell from the distance. Next to him, Finnick watched me, his shocked expression matching everyone else's.

But I wasn't paying attention to Finnick. It was just Peeta and I as we stared each other down across the park. We weren't really angry with each other, but our gazes were so intense we might as well have been. He wouldn't look away for a second, his soft blue eyes trained on me. I couldn't look away myself. He was mesmerizing. But more than that, I was surprised he was here. He wasn't supposed to see that. Nobody was supposed to see that.

I looked down after a few moments, breaking out of my shy shell to return to my resentful one. I could have breathed fire in that moment.

It was like I was glass and they were waiting for me to break after mother had shook the table and made me fall. My lip trembled, and I recognized the rage immediately. My whole body was shaking with it, and I knew I had to get away from all the people if I wanted even a small piece of my dignity left.

"Comeonrue," I spoke in a rushed low tone. She must have understood how angry I was because with one look at my face, she led us back out the park and on the way to her house a few blocks away. On the way there, I cursed my mother to every bad place I could conjure up, Hell included. How dare her yell and make false accusations at me in public. I took care of Prim my whole life. I would never put her in any danger, and she knew that.

And of course Peeta and Finnick had to be there to witness it all. As if we hadn't already been through enough embarrassing situations. They would start asking questions, questions I wasn't ready to give the answers to. They probably thought I was some loser who runs away from home with her sister and her friend, with a crazy mom that likes to yell constantly about nothing important. Even though the last bit was true, I didn't want people to think anything less of me than they already did. My mother was a monster, but I could handle it as long as she contained it all for home. Apparently, that day she couldn't.

"I'm guessing that's what happens when she doesn't take her meds." Rue's words were spoken so softly I almost didn't hear them. But I was alert as we crossed the street to get to her house, my eyes and ears paying close attention to all of our surroundings. Prepared for another attack.

She looked to me to see if I had heard her. My dry mouth found the ability to speak. "Prim told you?" She nodded in return.

"She didn't explain much, but enough. Enough." I nodded. It wasn't surprising that Prim would allude to her our personal business. Normally I would be enraged about an outsider knowing of our home life. How poor we were, how sick our bipolar mother was. But Rue was different. She may as well have been part of the family. She and Prim had been friends for quite some years, and I treated her with the same cherished nature as I did with my little sister.

The tense atmosphere was destroyed when Rue asked me, "so what's the deal with you and Pete?" I became rigid and walked slower, while she seemed perfectly fine. As if it was normal for her to burst with out-of-the-blue questions about Peeta Mellark.

"W-what do you—"

"My big brother Thresh told me about your incident today, and then you two looked all mushy and in the moment back at the park." She giggled up at my still form, and waved her hand for me to continue walking. I hadn't realized I'd stopped. I didn't meet her curiously knowing gaze as I caught up to her on the sidewalk. So she had been the one to tell Prim about the shower thing.

"How would your brother know?" I wondered aloud, cursing this idiot for sharing my embarrassing moments when I didn't even know who he was and why he knew.

"He's on the football team you work at. He says you and Peeta have a lot of 'sexual tension' going on. I don't blame you. He's reeeeaalllly cute." She giggled again, and this time I couldn't but laugh lightly as well. Her laugh was contagious. There was also a small part of me that agreed with the last part of her statement, though I would never admit that out loud. The rest of the way to her house was silent, until we reached her ivory front door.

"You should really give Peeta a chance Katniss. I know how you feel about boys, but he's…well, Peeta. He isn't the same as all the other ones." I was just considering her words, when she threw in, "besides, you already saw him naked." Then she burst in a fit of laughter as if she had said the funniest thing in the world, and attempted to tell me goodnight as she unlocked her front door and stepped inside.

Damn teenagers.

When I finally returned home – having successfully avoided my mother's sleeping form on the couch – I headed straight upstairs to talk to Prim about earlier. I opened our bedroom door, prepared to dish out all of my outrage to her. I stopped though when I realized she was fast asleep, her small frame taking up the majority of the bed she lied in. I watched her for a few moments before turning our light off and grabbing trash off the ground. I decided I would let Prim sleep in peace. My complaints could wait until the morning. Besides, she deserved a good night's rest.

The phone rang just as I stepped out of our room, and I rushed downstairs to answer before mother woke. When I pressed the receiver to my ear, I observed her even breathing and folded limbs. She was still asleep.

"Hello?" I whispered, checking to see that she was still sleeping, which she was.

"Hey Catnip." Gale's answer was simple, but it had the power of calming me down after the insane day I had. I didn't answer him, instead traveling from our living room to the other bedroom and plopping down on the queen sized bed.

"Hey Gale. Why are you calling so late?"

"Katniss, it's 5:32." I confirmed his statement with a look at my mother's alarm clock.

"Oh," was all I said, and we both laughed at how little I paid attention to detail. "So why are you calling?"

"Me and my brothers were going to go down to the lake tomorrow, catch some fish and whatnot. You should join us. It's been awhile." I closed my eyes, imagining icy water surrounding me. Gale was right; it had been awhile. A lake adventure sounded amazing, and I told him so.

"Great. See you soon Catnip." A beep on the other end indicated that he had hung up, so I lazily got up from the bed and made my way back to my room, phone in hand. I dropped it back off in the living room, and made my way upstairs. Prim was still in her same outstretched position, so I grabbed a pillow and blanket, making a homemade bed on the ground. As soon as my head hit the pillow, exhaustion kicked in my system and I let it take over.

My eyes opened to a slamming door downstairs. I shot up, checking my surroundings.

Prim was sitting on our bed, a book nestled between her legs. She met my gaze with a tired expression.

"Mom was in a bad mood. Just left for work." She looked back down at her rattled book. "And she said don't make plans to disappear with me as a hostage without telling her first. I don't think she took her meds this morning." The thought caused her to sigh, flipping a page in her novel. But I knew she wasn't really reading. I tried to come up with something that would cheer her up, and smiled when I thought of something.

"Well, I don't have to work today. How do pancakes for breakfast sound?" She instantly beamed, a mouthwatering expression crossing her face.

"Expensive…yet delicious." We both fell silent as we thought of the consequences of spending money on unnecessary foods, especially after being robbed just a while ago.

"Mom would be mad if she found out…" Prim trailed off, her book all but forgotten on the bed next to her. I smiled at the thought of making that monster mad.

"Let's do it."

* * *

On my way to get our sugary breakfast, I decided to stop into town to get Gale something special from the bakery. It was almost his birthday, and I figured I could afford to get him a small treat with some of my extra money from working. The walk there was relaxing. The jacket I wore contrasted nicely with the early morning breeze, saving me from a freeze fest. My poor excuse for a jacket may have been damaged over the years, but it still served its purpose. I praised the fact that the trip gave me a second to collect my thoughts. It would be so awkward walking in where Peeta worked after the whole park thing.

I was just formulating a plan of avoidance near the entrance when I heard a loud bang. The side door crashed open, a blonde haired boy falling out of it helplessly. Above him stood a middle-aged woman, a frying pan in one hand and a crinkled receipt in the other.

"Worthless garbage! It was ONE simple order. ONE. And YOU screwed it up! This will pull all of our orders back an entire day! A WHOLE FUCKING DAY!" She then began beating the boy with the pan she was holding, loud clanks echoing from the impact to his face.

Without thinking, I approached the pair, game face on. When I became within their view, both looked at me with shocked expressions. Hers, a disgusted shock. His, a horrified shocked. I didn't care. She had a weapon, but I had the element of surprise. I grabbed the pan and threw it behind me, not caring where it landed. Then I turned towards the boy and took his hands, pulling him up. His face was red from the blows, only fueling my pulsing hatred for the stunned woman in front of me.

I spit in her face, pulling a startled cry out of her, and proceeded to drag the boy along with me. I realized a few seconds later that were headed towards the woods, and I walked with more determination than I had before.

"YOU FILTHY RATS! YOU WILL NOT WALK AWAY FROM ME! COME BACK HERE THIS INSTANT OR I PROMISE YOU THERE WILL BE CONSEQUENCES FOR YOU BOTH—" Shit. I hadn't thought about how bad he would have it now that I had to step in, but I pushed that to the back of mind. We would deal with that when it came time to deal with it. Her bitter cries faded away into the distance as we approached the woods, and I got the strange feeling of déjà vu from the park.

We shared something in common. Abusive mothers. Of course, his situation was much worse than mine, her shameful words and physical attacks leaving him in the bitter state he seemed to be in now. But my mother was verbally abusive and it all hurt the same.

We didn't stop walking until I reached my designation. I grabbed hold of the first branch, pulling my body upwards. Then my feet carried my further up, and soon I was climbing. He watched me intently for only a few moments before following suit, only taking much, much longer. I would have talked him through it, but I figured I should let him restore his male pride after 'saving' him from his mother like that.

When he reached my sitting form against the trunk, he propped himself up right next to me. We stayed like that for half an hour, watching the sun light up the morning sky with its rise. Somehow during that time, Peeta's hands found mine. For some unknown reason to me, I didn't let go. Instead, I clutched him tightly, wanting to give him some source of comfort. His blonde hair looked more golden when the sun hit it, and I fought the urge to smooth it out. It was sticking up in all directions, probably signifying that he was sleep before his mother hit him. That would explain the white t-shirt and plaid attire.

"Orange. It's my favorite color." As he spoke, he pulled our intertwined hands to his lap. I wasn't sure why he was telling me this, but I couldn't conjure up coherent thoughts anyway while my hand made contact with his body. I kept my calm though. Now was definitely not the time for my teenage hormones to take over. I was silent for a moment before saying,

"She's wrong you know." He turned to look at me curiously, and I held his gaze before continuing. "You're anything but worthless." His eyes softened, and we stayed up in the tree a while longer before I remembered Prim and her pancakes. "I should really get back…" I trailed off, and he nodded eagerly, as if just noticing how long we had been up here.

Reluctantly, we climbed down and made the journey back to his family's' bakery. He stopped at the entrance a solid glare pointed toward it. I couldn't help but wonder what would happen now that I had intervened between him and his mother. He finally turned back to me, and I waited for him to say something.

"Thank you." And with that, he strode back into Mellark Bakery.

* * *

Sitting there on the bench the following day, I was heated. But he was fuming.

After he had returned to his home and I to mine (without pancakes for Prim, I might add), I hadn't been able to concentrate on anything else but Peeta. Every moment I questioned his safety. Was he alright? Did his mother tell my mother? Where did this leave us now? Even being with Gale and his uncontrollable family couldn't pull me out of my whirlwind of thoughts. I was scared for him and eager to get to work the next day.

But when I had arrived, things weren't as I had imagined. He wasn't awkward or weird. Finnick approached me with some lame joke, and he was right on his heels. He smiled freely, laughing at Finnick. He winked at me. There was no tense silence after everything that had happened. He pretended that it never did.

So I pushed him.

Finnick was confused. Peeta was too, that much was clear. It was a good thing mostly everyone was in the court lined up for throws, because I was making a pretty big scene. The other guys who had been present ran for the door, probably sensing one big fight showdown between us.

I yelled at him for being an idiot. I called him ignorant, stupid, and selfish. I repeatedly pushed him.

His expression would have been funny if I wasn't so angry. He looked to Finnick for some insight as to why I was doing all of this, but he had the same clueless look fixated on his face. I figured I would give him a little hint as to why I was so mad at him.

"Have you forgotten all about yesterday?" His face became horrified at my mention of the event.

"Katniss don—"

"Would you just like me to _forget_ that your mother _beats_ yo—" His hand clamped over my mouth then, and he shot a worried glance in Finnick's direction.

"Pete…" Finnick seemed heartbroken at the realization of Peeta's situation, but Peeta was past that. He was absolutely furious, and I became the enemy. He and Finnick had walked out to the court, him trying to explain what happened. We loathed each other after that, shooting daggers into one another as all the guys did their warm ups.

So here I was at the end of the day, putting away footballs and silently frenzied. It wasn't only the abuse from his family that consumed my thoughts, but the memory of his hand in mine. And it made me so angry that it felt so good.

My mind wandered over to the day before again, and I almost smacked myself for not being able to think about anything else. So we held hands? Big deal. He was going through a rough time and needed a friend, even if he was stubborn and wouldn't talk about it. I was acting like one of those girls that like every football player in town and constantly have fantasies about getting in their pants. I wasn't interested in what was in Peeta's pants. I was just wondering about his well-being and his crazy abusive mother. Yeah. Not interested in his pants. Nope.

I inwardly sighed at how in denial I was—

The Gym door surged open, causing it to slam on the wall opposite it. "What the hell?" I turned around, about to yell at whatever idiot was causing so much commotion. Peeta's angry form was a hurricane on the court, and I stood taller, prepared for whatever he would throw my way.

"What the FUCK do you think you're doing?" I scoffed at his question. As if _I _was the one denying anything had ever transpired between us.

"I'm trying to clean up footballs, would you like to help?" He started shaking his head even before I was done; already convinced that whatever was to come out of my mouth was wrong.

"You know what I mean! You can't…just…_say _something like that in public. With _people _around." We were chest to chest now, him glaring down at me, me scoffing up at him.

"I'm so sorry," I started, my voice dripping sarcasm. "I wasn't thinking about how bad it would be if your friends found out about that your mother b—"

"Don't say it." He pushed forward, and I walked backwards as he continued walking towards me.

"Say what?" I taunted him, wanting to make him mad. To get him riled up. "That your mother likes to hit you with frying pans and who knows what else?"

"_STOP!_" He pounded his hands on the wall behind my head on both sides. His thunderous voice echoed off the walls of the court, and he hung his head merely centimeters from mine. A small portion of my brain noticed that he smelled like cookie dough, but I pushed it to the back.

"Just stop okay? I don't need your help, or your sympathy, or your dumbass slip ups to ruin my life for me. I can do it all by myself. I can handle myself. I'm a big boy, alright?" I pushed him away from me for what seemed like the hundredth time that day.

"Fine! Just remember that _you _were the one who pushed _me _away. Got it?" He ran his hands through his hair, looking distressed about something.

"I'm doing this for you."

My tone was incredulous. "_Doing this for me_? Cut the bullshit, it's not needed." His face returned to its loathsome state.

"Bullshit? Katniss, she's threatening to call the police to report you, and tell your mother." His words stopped me in my tracks. "And after what happened at the park, I didn't think that would be good for either you or Prim. She said I'm forbid from ever speaking to you again, so if that's what it takes to keep you safe, I'm willing to go through with it." He ran his hands through his hair again. "I loved what you did for me, almost as much as I love you, but I meant what I said. I'm a big boy who can handle his own problems. You've got enough on your plate already, and you don't need some worthless guy to jump in and cause more problems for you." I couldn't speak if I wanted to. My breath was caught in my throat.

"Just stay back, okay? Please Kat. I couldn't live with myself if you got hurt." He leaned his forehead against mine and pressed a kiss to my temple. Then he backed away from me, and retreated out the door. That was when I realized that there was a lot more to Peeta Mellark than he led on.

If he thought I was going to stay back now, he was sadly mistaken.

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So sorry for the long wait, please don't hate me. Thank you to everyone who reviewed the last chapter: **passionately-curious, micmic022, Thynerdgurl, Horsecrazy141, and kaylaaalyse229. **Thank you all for reading, and please review! It makes me happy (:

Up next is more arguing, and the M rating comes into play a bit. I'll try my best not to make you wait so long for the next chapter. Sorry for any mistakes I make, I'm going back and trying to fix them.


	4. Chapter 4

_A/N: Not the best, but I really just wanted to update. Please don't kill me. I'm sorry for the wait.I also changed the genre. By the way, pay attention to detail. For the most part, I don't just throw random facts in the story because I'm bored. A lot of the things I include have a purpose. On that note, enjoy. ;)_

_Disclaimer: I don't own The Hunger Games._

_Summary: __When life gives you football players, you make happiness—against all odds. Even if they always seem to not be in your favor. Modern day AU. OOC, since, y'know, Cato isn't killing it up and stuffs._

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**Chapter 4: Katniss' POV**

The next week was hell. And the week after that. And the week after that. After Peeta's confession about his horrible mother and her threats, he avoided me like the plague. If Haymitch told me I was supposed to be timing Peeta's workouts, he needed to work on something else. If Finnick invited me out to dessert with them, Peeta was busy. If I was involved, Peeta was not. And it drove me up the wall.

At one point I had even tried to lock him in his bathroom stall to get him to talk to me. He ended up crawling under and running out like a madman before I could catch him.

I wasn't quite sure what the source for my newfound obsession with him was, but I concluded that it had something to do with rebelling against his mother. She was so set in stone about us not hanging out with each other that I wanted to spend every waking second with him. Why should she get to dictate his life? She'd done enough damage already without controlling him, too.

I tried to get Finnick on my side, which he was more than happy to oblige to. He had said, "the boy's been longing after you for wayyy too long to back out now," which caused me to blush deeply and him to laugh. Each free moment he had, he was trying to convince Peeta to come hang out with us. But each time Peeta would hold his tongue and turn the other way.

On the bright side, Finnick and I seemed to be getting closer because of Peeta's distance. When he would insist that he was too "busy," Finnick would offer me a milkshake or run with me. It was nice to actually have a friend who was laid back and wanted to spend time with. Since apparently our next best thing refused to take up our offers.

When I wasn't stalking Peeta though, I was investigating the robbery with Gale. Within the last few days, Gale had noticed a few missing items from their old shed, and he was more than determined to "bust the punk who steals stuff," as he had put it. We had been meeting up after my work was done to scope out different areas. Every day he had some new suspect.

"Tommy Rogers," he said after my shift today. I smirked in return, knowing that by the day was over he would move on to some other person he thought robbed him. Truthfully, Gale didn't trust anyone in town. I couldn't really blame him though. Not all townies were as sweet as Peeta and Finnick.

"Why Tommy?" I questioned as I grabbed my new bag from Finnick with all my belongings. We began walking in the direction of his house.

"Because that kid is always in trouble about something. He just seems like the type that would steal." I laughed at his theory, not believing it for a second. Tommy was an eleven year old child. I seriously doubted he would be the one to take it.

As we were walking, someone ran by and knocked into me on the way. I almost fell to the ground, but Gale's arm shot out to catch me.

"Hey! Watch it!" he shouted at the kid, who was now running full speed. I shook my head at him. Townies. When I reached down to grab my bag, it was gone. Confused, I looked to Gale to see if he had it, which he didn't. My eyes caught the purple glint of my bag in the distance, with the guy who knocked me down.

"He has my bag!" I exclaimed to Gale, pointing at his moving frame. It took a mere two seconds for him to register the situation and then take off after him. "GALE!" I shouted after him, but he was already several feet away.

"Peeta wait!" I heard behind me, and looked up just in time to see Peeta following closely behind Gale and the other guy.

I screamed after him, not wanting this turn into one big mess. "PEETA!" Just like with Gale, he didn't listen and kept running after them.

"What happened?" Suddenly Finnick was there beside me, eating beef jerky.

"He stole my bag!" I repeated, and Finnick dropped his jerky on the sidewalk.

"Gale? You mean the bag I got you? Shit!" And off he went after everyone else.

"No! FINNICK!" I groaned at how everyone was ignoring me today, and decided I might as well go after them. Before I could even take one step in their direction, a big coffee skinned guy ran past me in the same direction.

"I'm Thresh, let's go Katniss!" He had a big smile on his face like this was all some huge game while he chased down the four boys. I remembered Rue saying that was the name of her big brother. The guy who ratted me out to my sister about Peeta. I questioned his sanity, but still ran with him all the same.

It seemed like me and Thresh were running through a maze as we followed everyone down several twists and turns around the town. Somehow we ended up near Gale's neighborhood, and I recognized the direction we were heading immediately.

"He's headed towards the woods!" I told Thresh excitedly. He wouldn't know where that was, but I did and I knew Gale did as well. We would have an advantage against the robber. I pushed my feet further until I neared Finnick and could finally see Gale and Peeta again. Sometime during the goose chase Peeta must have surpassed Gale, because he was further up than Gale was. I was surprised at his strength until I remembered that he was a football player.

As if this whole situation wasn't weird enough, things got weirder when we neared the tree only Gale and I knew the way to. The same tree Peeta and I had spent time in only a week ago. My robber apparently knew a lot about us.

The guy reached the tree at the same time as Peeta and tried to climb, but Peeta was faster. He grabbed and pulled him down on the ground just as Gale arrived. The guy screamed and Gale started to pull him back up, but Finnick arrived then and tackled him to the ground. He and Gale wrestled on the ground while Peeta stood there clueless. The robber was just starting to get away when Thresh and I got there, and Peeta and Thresh pushed the guy back down.

"You aren't going anywhere," Peeta growled at him, and the guy attempted to push him, but Thresh caught his arms and they held him against the tree again.

"I got this, you should probably take care of that," he told Peeta while nodding towards the heap of Finnick and Gale on the ground. Peeta rolled his eyes and moved toward them, trying to pry Finnick off of Gale's body.

I looked back and forth between all of them, not wanting to get in the middle. But I _was_ in the middle and I didn't know what the hell to do about it, so I stood there some more.

By this point Peeta had gotten Finnick off Gale, but Gale was persistent and tried to attack him again.

"Hey!" He screamed at them both, "we have more important things to take care of."

"Like what?" Finnick asked, glaring daggers at Gale. "He stole Katniss' bag." Peeta looked confused for a moment before shaking his head. He pointed at the guy being held against the tree by Thresh, and understanding washed over Finnick's face. "Oh," was all he said before smiling sheepishly at Gale.

"Yeah, so stop attacking me you freak," Gale spit at him, but Finnick only laughed.

"Sorry man. No hard feelings macho dude." Gale narrowed his eyes at Finnick's nickname before walking toward the tree. Peeta smacked him in the stomach, which is what I would have done if I hadn't been walking towards the tree as well.

"What?" I heard Finnick ask behind me. As I approached the tree, I caught pieces of the robbers words as he spoke to Thresh.

"—swear man! It's just what I have to do! Snow would kill me if he knew I failed him!" I scrunched my eyebrows at his words. Snow? Who the hell was Snow?

Gale voiced my thoughts out loud. Thresh looked to us. "While you two were fighting," he exaggerated, pointedly to Gale and Finnick, "I was interrogating Mr. Steals-A-Lot over here. Apparently he works for some guy named Snow, but he won't spill much else."

"Wait," I held my palm up, trying to remember what name my mother had mentioned that day at the kitchen table. "I think that's the name of the guy my mom mentioned to me. He's part of some gang or something. Am I right?" Everyone looked toward the robber for confirmation.

"Look," he started, "I don't make the rules. I just follow them. If I don't get through with this, I'm gonna be toast. There's only 5 of us left out of 24—"

"What the hell is he rambling about?" Gale turned to Thresh for an answer. He merely shrugged in response. "Maybe we should gag him," Gale suggested, and he actually looked serious.

"Okay, Okay, I'll talk! My name is Charlie, and yes, I am part of a gang! But I can't tell you anymore, I swear! I'll break the rules! Please let me go! I'm sorry! I'll give you your bag back and stay away from your family. I swear on my life! PLEASE!" His frantic eyes gave way to his young age, and I figured he couldn't be older than fourteen although he was so tall. But what kind of fourteen year old got involved with this kind of stuff?

"Let him go," I heard myself saying. "He didn't do anything wr—"

"Fuck that," Peeta interrupted before I could finish. "Search the kid for anything else he might have taken." I whirled toward him at his words.

"What do you mean _search him_? This isn't some dumb crime show Peeta! In case you haven't noticed, we basically just kidnapped a child. If we take his stuff, we could go to jail." He completely disregarded my words, instead moving towards the guy, where Thresh and Gale had started emptying his pockets while I wasn't looking.

"No one's going to jail Kat," Finnick spoke behind me, reaching forward to rub my shoulders. I whirled toward him, about to argue my point, but the constant change in conversation was giving me verbal whiplash. I was sick of arguing my point. Instead I shook my head and moved out of his grasp.

"Whatever. Do what you want. But I won't participate in any—" Peeta abruptly cut me off. Again.

"Fine. Then don't." He directed his blazing eyes away from Charlie and onto me, sizing me up. Then he proceeded with his stupid searching process.

Maybe it was him. Maybe it was me. Maybe it was the situation. Maybe it was the heat. Maybe it was cramps. Whatever the reason, my control ultimately snapped like a twig into a billion pieces until I was left with nothing but a burning hatred for Peeta Mellark.

After that, a similar scene to the one after the bakery thing went down. Only this time, I was on top of him, clawing like a cat. And there were more witnesses. And he was a little more furious.

"Stop!" I heard in the distance, but I was too far gone. All my previous frustrations derived from him just flowed through my body to hands, and I couldn't stop touching—okay, _hurting_him in whatever way I could. Pushing, scratching, and I'm pretty sure I smacked him at some point, but Finnick and Gale managed to tear me off of him and I tried to calm down. He was still on the ground, still unmoving, staring at me like a crazy person. And then I lost it again.

"C'mon! Don't you feel anything? C'mon hit me! Since you hate me so much. Right?" At this, his eyes seemed to turn a darker, icy blue.

"You don't know anything." He then got up, gave the kid a hard glare, and walked away.

I risked a glance at everyone else, balancing their focus between me and the theif. Finnick waved me off and started questioning the kid with Thresh, but Gale had a deep glare centered on me. I ignored him and chased after Peeta, now several feet away.

"Peeta!" I ran towards him, and by the look he casted me over his shoulder he wasn't happy. His pace quickened but I caught his shoulder. He hissed in response and pushed away from me, causing the shirt to rip at the juncture between his neck and shoulder. It provided a clear view of a gash with dried blood surrounding it.

We stood still. He stared me down, judging my reaction. I stared him down, judging what weapon his mother used.

I finally looked up at him, but his eyes were no longer icy. Just distant.

"Peeta you can't keep letting her do that to you." I barely spoke above a whisper, but my words seemed to hit him like a boulder.

"It's none of your business. Leave it alone. Why can't you just leave me alone?" His breath rattled the hairs around my face, making me realize just how close we were.

"Because you don't deserve it. None of it. I'm sorry." He shut his eyes tightly and I almost expected him to cry. But when he opened his eyes, they were expressionless.

"Well I don't need your pity." With that, he was off in the opposite direction again.

I sighed, watching him retreat with an unknown emotion coursing through my body.

"I know.

* * *

I went home that day to a confused Prim who was wondering why I was crying. I couldn't have answered her if I tried.

I didn't know why I was crying over a boy. Especially one who was so obviously not interested in me. But he was different. Not in the 'he talks with an accent' or 'listens to indie music' way, but in a real sense. Guys were just jerks in general. Peeta wasn't.

Well...most of the time.

I went through scenarios of the perfect couple that night while Finnick filled me in on what happened with Charlie after I left. Wondered what Peeta and I would be like in that situation. I felt bad not listening to how he played hero and let him go with a warning, but I couldn't stop thinking about Peeta. Eventually poor Finn caught on to my lack of interest and let me go, but my mind still wouldn't stop reeling about how royally fucked everything was.

Prim had noticed my absent-minded demeanor from the moment I walked in and tried her best to give me my space, but duty called and we were starving, so I went back to being Big Sister for the night.

That is, until the pizza I ordered arrived along with a very creepy looking man.

"You should be more careful," he spoke to me. I paused, my hands rested against the pizza box and foot halfway in the air. I almost thought I imagined his eerie words until he continued.

"One day you're gonna get hurt. You can send that message on to bread boy." His piercing black eyes held onto to mine for 3 long seconds before he scurried down our steps and out of my view.

"Who was that?" Prim asked, pulling out a pepperoni slice. I immediately shit the door and pushed the lock in.

"Just a friend." No way in hell was I going to tell my sister about all the creepy shit that had been happening lately.

I didn't get an ounce of sleep that night.

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**Peeta's POV:**

I slept like a baby that night. After I took Tylenol for my wounds, I ended up collapsing on my bed in a heap. Rye said something to me but I was out before he could finish his sentence.

Like every other night, I dreamed of Katniss. But things got a little more heated than usual.

Blame the Tylenol or my perverted male mind, but my dream started off in a bathroom.

_The shower was running, and a slim girl with flowing brown hair was standing under the water. Katniss. I stepped closer, noticing the way the water ran down her back and ass in the most luscious of ways. Her wet body seemed to draw me in, and my feet carried me closer._

_Finally I was at the glass door and immediately removed every piece of clothing attached to me. I opened the door and she spun around, not trying to hide her shock at finding me here._

"_Peeta?" Before she could continue to speak, I shushed her with my lips and locked her hair in my hands. She moaned, the delicious sound coming out ragged, and lifted her hands to rest on my hips. _

_I took advantage of her distraction, and let my hands roam down her hair to her perfect ass. She squeaked in response, and I smirked in the kiss. Then I let my hands roam further, inching towards the front near her most prized possession. I reached her in moments and began stroking—_

My eyes shot open. It took me a few seconds to realize that my brother's alarm was going off, but by the time he shut it off I was fully aware of the massive hard-on I was sporting. I internally groaned at my bad luck and waited a full 2 minutes for Rye to leave the room for me to even think about continuing.

Once he left and I was sure he wouldn't be returning, I went straight back to my fantasy and began finishing the scenario myself. I got my shorts down past my waist and firmly gripped myself. My hands started a slow pace as I imagined what would have happened next.

_I began stroking her slippery folds with my entire hand, and she arched her back so far I thought she might break it. Her moans increased in volume, and I took pride in knowing that I was causing her this much pleasure._

By that point my hands were moving up and down at a good pace, and I almost wished Katniss was there with me to help finish the job off.

_I took two fingers and dipped them inside her, squeezing past her sensitive folds. She gasped, her mouth forming a perfect little "O" in response. I watched all this happen, in awe from her rare beauty in this intimate moment. She grabbed my penis and I thought I would die right then and there._

I rubbed myself harder at the thought of her hands on me, increasing speed. I was so close I could feel it. I finished with a low grunt into my pillow as I imagined her soft hands stroking me from tip to balls.

The guilt caught up to me while I fished for Kleenex to clean my stomach off, as always when I would imagine Katniss in that way. It felt so wrong to think of her like that, but I really had no self-restraint. Especially remembering how close we were during our fight. She had me strung tighter than a Ziploc bag and she didn't even know it.

I sighed, fantasizing about things that could never happen and thinking that Katniss Everdeen would be the death of me.

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A/N: Thank you to everyone who reviewed the last chapter**: risingfromtheshadows, hpfan73, kayola15, Thynerdgurl, Horsecrazy141, jackyb, annabbb,** and a **Guest.** I appreciate the feedback so much!


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